Overall?
Yes, it’s pretty fantastic. Just the sheer volume of problems and stellar lines in each area is reason enough to make the trip.
Best area I’ve ever been?
Hmmm…maybe not. I found that holistically it didn’t quite hit the mark. Living in Australia means it is going to cost you a lot to travel anywhere out of the South Pacific and it is going to take a long time. If I’m going to commit to dropping the dosh and to draining my annual leave for the year, I would prefer there to be more going on on my rest days…something that Europe has dialled.
Strangely enough it is so similar to Australia it seems silly to travel that far for a duplicate experience…albeit multiplied by 1000.
Weather?
July was a great month to go but was super popular so book early. (If you camp, it isn’t as important to book ahead). Temps are a bit warm over 15 C so if confronted with warm weather, go in the morning or partake in the popularly growing night sesh.
If there is a big rain you will find that 8 day rain and Sassies dries out faster than the others.
If it is a bit warm, go to the Pass as it is at a higher elevation and will stay a bit cooler.
If the weather is not looking great make sure to drive through the pass to Riverside and Tea Garden areas to check to see if the weather is the same on the other side of the range and vice versa if you are staying on the Clanwilliam side.
Local attractions?
There isn’t much to do locally and you have to be brave. If you travel with a large group of boys, you should be OK but as 2, we felt a bit unsettled. Most of the safaris are East of the area and I believe there is one option in the West which is approximately a 3 hour drive. It is hard to commit doing this though on a single day rest from climbing. We made it to the coast (Lamberts bay) but being winter, had nothing to really offer except a quick view of the beach. There were few choices for food and no local shopping or markets.
Accommodation?
They do pretty well with their remote location to be fair. The camp grounds are beautiful and the cottages are quaint. Luckily we had our own bathroom and shower which is paramount for me these days. The problem? I’m too old to rough it any more. I’m over shivering around a tiny bit of heat in a dank, rodent infested hovel after a long day “at work”. This doesn’t mean that there is something better available, this is just the way these cottages are built. When it rained the ceiling leaked, we had a couple of geckos living behind our fridge, trails of ants were travelling on our walls and the local mice tried to chew through just about everything. What did we do? Stuff everything we owned into the microwave, fridge and our car. I suppose you could say this was part of the charm?
Accommodation in relation to climbing…
There were rumours before we booked our trip that you need to be in De Pakhuys because the other accommodation is too far away from the crags but it really wasn’t a big deal. There is certainly an advantage in being super close because De Pakhuys has quite a few areas at their back door but it never caused any issues for us. If you want to climb at Sassies, 8 Day Rain, The Pass, Tea Garden, Riverside, Champsite, Campground etc, you will still need a car and will need to drive out of the campgrounds to get there. A 4-wheel drive is the better option when heading to Sassies but not necessary anymore. It was a bit dicey with our Toyota Corolla but we made it just fine. The directions to Sassies has changed since the guidebook was released, Charite from Travellers Rest organised painted feet on the rock path marking the way in so ask her if you aren’t sure.
Tips…
My advice is to not try and explore without consulting Charite at Travellers Rest. She will be able to hook you up with the underground South African experience, plans that can’t be booked without a local.
Check the cottage location out with Charite before you book with Travellers Rest. They have tons of cottages scattered in various locations, some walking distance from the restaurant and others quite a drive. (There are cottages closer to climbing areas too, if you don’t need to be near the restaurant: 8 day rain and Sassies)
We had a couple of friends that paid extra for the “wi-fi” cottages at Travellers Rest and reported back that they didn’t have any reception so had to come to the restaurant to pay for wi-fi anyway.
Come prepared because you will find it hard to buy any climbing gear in country. Travellers Rest has chalk and guidebooks but limited in number.
The guidebook is a necessity although I found it hard to follow. Seek out the landmarks and use those as a guide. Don’t be shy and ask people that are around to tell you what they are on or you may find yourself wasting a lot of time looking and not climbing. We tried to make it out to French side and got so confused that we gave up. We made the trek out to Otherside based on intuition and logic..following the trail as far as possible and nearly turned around. Best thing to do is to pass the turn off to the Fortress and continue along the path. Head up into the rocky range, follow it back down again until it flattens out. When you think you have walked too far, keep walking. You will have a dip in the path and when you come up to the other side, there should be a cairn on the left. When you turn off, Ampithetre is the first Boulder cluster on your left.
Food…
The menu at the restaurant at Travellers rest is really good, Charite is a great cook and prices are reasonable: burgers, pizza, some South African dishes, great desserts and cheap wine. You can buy your wood here cheaper than at the supermarket and they sometimes make their own bread (have to place your order with Charite)
There is a cute cafe at De Pakhuys called the Hen House…beautiful spot on a sunny day with some interesting options on the menu.
The supermarket in Clanwilliam, Superspar, has a great selection of groceries, make sure that you don’t go too late as things like chicken sell out. The best place to park is around the back of the building in their dedicated parking lot.
Other helpful web pages to plan your trip: http://blistergearreview.com/features/trip-report-rocklands-south-africa/2 http://www.depakhuys.com http://www.roomsforafrica.com http://www.chalkonrock.com/best-of-rocklands-2011/ Martin Keller’s take on the area has a lot of truth: http://www.moonclimbing.com/blog/2012/09/the-dark-and-the-bright-side-of-rocklands/
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